Crown Gent Saw rehab

I had a crown gent saw that I purchased a while back hoping to do some hand work, while not breaking the budget. I never used the saw after the first time being that I found the handle very uncomfortable, and the saw to not cut very well.

After digging around and drooling over some very fine hand saws here on LJ I decided while I may not have the capital to spring for a LN or other high end dovetail saw I could at least do something with what I had.

I took a scrap of walnut laying around, and a few stainless steel bolts from an old Harbor Fright saw (why I had it I do not know, I can’t even remember purchasing it) and cut out a handle, shaped it with the rasp and fit it to the saw.

I took about 1 day in the shop sitting around wondering what to do with that day. I have very limited time in the shop with 2 children under 3 and 2 jobs, so I did’t want to start something I couldn’t finish.

Well a few weeks of wiping on varnish here, and sanding there, I finally put the finish on the finished product. All in all I am very happy, its comfortable in the hand, looks good to the eye and was entirely free. The only thing it cost me was a gouge in the first finger from the slip of the chisel while digging out the mortise for the back.

LESSON LEARNED about being “downrange” from a sharp chisel.

I didn’t like the look of the stock stainless steel, and didn’t want to spend money on hardware so I took a torch to the steel to colorize it and give it a patina rather than a flat out chrome like finish. All in all very happy.

And a $4 saw file made a night and day difference in its cutting. Now I want to make a saw.

If the wound was anywhere else it would have been stitched but because it was in the fold of the skin the Dr. said its best to just bandage it and let it work itself together, otherwise if the stitches are off it may not heal back together perfect.